Good Question: Why Is It So Hard To Keep New Year’s Resolutions?

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — About 40 percent of us will make New Year’s resolutions for 2014. But,according to research by University of Scranton psychologist Dr. John Norcross, those lofty goals fall by the wayside after six months for more than half who set them. In his study, success rates were 71 percent for two weeks, 64 percent for one month and 46 percent for six months.

But even these rates might be over-inflated, he admits.

So why is it so hard for us to keep our New Year’s Resolutions?

“I think it’s because we have conflicting goals going on,” said Penn State marketing professor Meg Meloy, who’s studied New Year’s resolutions. “We try to be good, and there are temptations that face us all the time. If we have both of these goals in our head, one goal might be suppressed for a period of time, but it often comes back to exert its influence.”

For example, she gives the choice between fruit salad and chocolate cake.

“Even though we said we’re not going for the chocolate cake, eventually we feel depleted, in a bad mood, and we succumb to the chocolate cake.”

“It’s a fresh start at first, and then it just gets boring,” said Richard Ross of Hudson, Wis.

Research shows humans like routines that usually are developed through repetition. For example, if we don’t have to think about showering or brushing our teeth, it frees up our brains. The same theory follows for bad habits.

“Status quo is very difficult to break out of,” Meloy said.

She finds it’s easier to follow resolutions when we break up our routines.

“If you have a group of co-workers that break for a snack at 3 o’clock, do something different at 3 o’clock,” she said.

Or as Gail Her of St. Paul put it: “You can’t really work on things if everything else stays the same.”

Meloy also suggest making resolutions public, committing money to a resolution – like hiring a personal trainer – and setting concrete goals. She especially liked Alicia Ross’ of Hudson plan to remember all of her nieces and nephews birthdays.

Heather Brown loves to put her curiosity to work to answer your Good Questions on WCCO 4 News at 10. She returned to WCCO in October of 2012 after two years of reporting at WNYW, a Fox affiliate in New York City. In the Big Apple, she primaril...